Double trouble
by Plush Panda
Summary: Due to powerful science, Gail is sidled up with another Gail from a parallel universe, who happens to be the exact opposite of her. Of course, with a super nice Gail walking around, confusing and entertaining things happen. Gail/Holly, AU!Gail/Andy. Rated T for language.
1. Part 1

**A/N or warning:** This is all written to satisfy my intense need for bizarro hilarious things to happen, so if there are gaping plot holes (or possibly entire characters missing, cough), that's all on me. Also, the beginning is very choppy and it hasn't been betaed, but I've been told it's worth it.

Trust my anonymous test readers.

Do it.

* * *

**Part one**

Holly alternated stares between the two identical women sitting on the couch in front of her. She crossed her arms, trying to determine the immensity of the practical joke.

"Are you gonna say something? You're making me uncomfortable," Gail-with-short-hair said. As far as Holly could determine, that was her Gail. Or used to be, anyway.

Gail-with-long-hair turned to look at the other Gail, looking puzzled but way too at peace for the situation at hand.

"Okay," Holly began, dropping her arms as she decided that Gail had a secret twin she hadn't told her about. "I thought you were serious when you said you had an emergency you needed my help with." She shot her Gail a disappointed look. "The joke's on me."

Gail-with-short-hair looked stricken, but the look was gone not a second later, replaced instead with an annoyed scowl. "I'm calling Steve," she said as she got up.

* * *

Holly watched as Steve stared in amazement at his sister and the woman who looked exactly like her. He took a few steps closer to the long-haired version of his sister, even leaning forwards to get a better look. "So you came through a—what was it, a portal?"

Gail-with-long-hair leaned back into the couch as he came closer, slightly wary. "To the best of my knowledge," she answered. "The crime scene was riddled with heavy machinery, so I have no idea, really."

Steve looked over her features; blue eyes, pale skin, platinum hair. The package was definitely the same, but the content was different. The look in her eyes was off somehow. Whereas there raged a permanent storm behind his Gail's eyes, these ones hid a peaceful lake. "Have you called mom?" he asked, looking over his shoulder at Gail-with-short-hair.

"Fuck no, you call her," Gail said, crossing her arms. The thought of calling Elaine to ask if maybe she had a twin daughter stashed away somewhere was mortifying. Steve couldn't pay her to pick up the phone.

Holly glanced between the siblings, starting to think that maybe Gail wasn't lying.

* * *

"What's your name?" Holly thought to ask, handing her a cup of tea. Steve and Gail-with-short-hair were talking in hushed voices a distance away, Gail noticeably distressed.

Gail-with-long-hair took the tea gratefully, shooting her a small smile before answering, "Gail Peck."

"And you work for Division 15?" Holly asked, starting to get a feel for the situation despite how ridiculous it was.

Gail nodded, calmly alternating her attention between her steaming tea and Holly.

"With who?"

"Well, Steve shows up occasionally," she said, nodding in his direction. "There's Nash, McNally, Epstein, Diaz, and Collins, to name a few. It's not the most pleasant workplace, to be honest."

Holly raised an eyebrow at that. As far as she knew, the mentioned officers were all decent human beings. She was about to ask another question, but she was beaten to it.

"Now I remember!" Gail gasped, drawing everyone's attention. "Where I've seen you before, I mean. You're that forensic pathologist who'd gotten fired for faking her degrees. I was sure you were going to do a few years, at the very least."

Gail-with-short-hair tried to hide her snort as a cough.

Holly sent her an unamused look.

"What? That's so obviously not true, it's funny," she defended herself and, unwittingly, Holly.

"Okay, so you're from some weird alternate universe or something?" Steve guessed, ignoring them.

Gail-with-long-hair shrugged. "All I know is that we weren't supposed to touch anything, but McNally, being McNally, pretty much took that as a challenge. There was a really loud noise, blinding light, and now I'm here."

"That... really doesn't sound like McNally." Gail-with-short-hair shook her head, a vague hint of a smile tugging at her lips. "At all."

* * *

"So what do we call you in the meanwhile?" Steve asked to avoid further confusion in the future. They had decided to dig into birth certificates and the like to confirm this new Gail's existence, though if her story turned out to be true, it was unlikely they were going to find anything.

"Dibs on Gail," Gail-with-short-hair quipped dryly.

Gail-with-long-hair shot her an amused smile, surprising everyone by not protesting.

"How about something similar?" Holly suggested quickly, seeing that Gail-with-short-hair was going to add something, and by the looks of it, something not very flattering.

"Gillian!" Steve proposed, smiling good-naturedly. He seemed disproportionally proud for coming up with that.

Gillian shrugged. "Sure."

"Gin it is," Gail confirmed.

"Short for Gillian?" Pretty much everyone in the room was weirded out to some degree by how freakishly composed and easy-going Gin was reacting.

"Short for 'Gin and Tonic that I'm going to need to process that your face is real every time I see it'," Gail deadpanned.

None were as freaked out as Gail herself.

* * *

"Wait, wait, wait," Gail called out as they were about to see off Steve. "Where is she going to stay? She has _my face_."

"And you have mine," Gin added quietly, sipping her tea.

Steve shrugged. "Tell the boys you have a twin?"

"Because that won't get back to the superintendent in any way," Gail said, words carefully dipped in sarcasm.

Steve's mouth fell open in silent understanding. "Oh."

"I can stay in a hotel?" Gin offered.

Gail thought it over reluctantly. Her only other options were to stay with Holly or Steve, and while one would be awkward, the other would just be a big fat no. "Fine, but we're getting you a phone, and if you ever don't answer when I call or you get in trouble with my face, I'm going to hunt down your fantastic ass and strap it to a chair in my closet."

Holly silently marveled at the way Gin took Gail's threats in stride and nodded her agreement. "Sounds fair."

* * *

When it was finally Gail and Gin's turn to leave Holly's apartment, Gail lagged behind a little, turning to Holly with a venerable puppy face. "I'm sorry if I'm causing you more trouble," she said quietly—quiet enough that Gin wouldn't immediately hear. "It's just that you're the smartest person I know and if anyone understands what's going on, it's you."

"You're right, you are causing more trouble." Holly shot her a small, understanding smile when Gail's face fell. "But I think, considering the circumstances, it's okay."

Gail looked off to the side for a moment, unable to meet her eyes, before looking up again. "Thanks."

Holly nodded. "Call me if anything changes."

"Yeah," she breathed, pausing as she decided how would be the best way to say goodbye and guessing that just turning to leave with Gin in tow was the way to go.

* * *

"You can't keep those," Gail said, eyeing the spare clothes Holly had borrowed Gin.

Gin paused before opening the door to her hotel room, following Gail's gaze. She somehow understood Gail perfectly, and returned Gail's deviant look with a bit of a mischievous smile. "Am I supposed to run around naked?"

Gail grimaced. "Okay, first of all, don't ever smile. I don't smile," she said, counting on her fingers. "And second of all, I will kill you."

"Yes ma'am," Gin chuckled before realizing she was smiling, and she bit her lip as she opened the door.

"Gross," Gail mumbled as she followed Gin into the room.

* * *

"So what you're saying is that I should stay indoors at all times," Gin summarized Gail's rant.

Gail briefly reviewed the plan in her head. "Yes."

"What about food?" Gin asked, and it annoyed Gail how fucking calm and collected Gin was all the fucking time. How was it even possible to stay calm and collected after being ripped away from the world as you know it?

"Takeout," Gail answered mindlessly. "Room service."

"What about my sanity?"

Gail looked around the room, eyes pausing on the TV. "Porn?"

Gin shot her a dry look, one that said she wasn't buying that answer.

"Ugh." Gail rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll bring you something," she agreed reluctantly. She headed for the door, but turned around at the last second, slipping off her beanie and throwing it at Gin. Gin looked at her questioningly. "If your life is in danger and you go out, you might want to hide your hair."

* * *

Contrary to the plan Gail had formed, she spent practically all her time with Gin at the hotel room. Every time she had a moment to spare all she could think about was Gin sneaking out and doing things that could be seen by familiar people. Worse yet, she would be _pleasant _and _polite_. Things that Gail Peck wasn't. So she practically moved in with Gin, even reluctantly falling asleep on the edge of the double bed, much to the double's amusement.

In the days that followed, Gail found out Gin was practically the opposite of her. She liked exercise, healthy foods, and books. She was nice and considerate, and laughed at her sarcastic jabs. When Gin ordered room service for them and got Gail a cheeseburger she hadn't asked for, she suddenly realized she kind of liked Gin.

They played video games together even though Gin didn't really like them, and for some reason, it reminded Gin of all the surprisingly gory and insane things she's been through on the force, and Gail secretly loved all the stupid stories she kept producing. Especially the ones where McNally was a giant dick and kept screwing things up. It was sickly sweet the way the sisterly bond had been created in a matter of days and Gail wanted to shoot herself in the foot for even going there.

It was part of why, when she got sick, she trusted Gin enough to quickly head to work and get her mobile phone. She'd stupidly left it at her locker.

* * *

Gin was amazed by how good the atmosphere was at work, but she tried not to let that distract her from the job at hand. Look sick, get phone, go back, make sure Gail doesn't die from whatever she caught. It didn't take long for her to reach her locker, and sure enough, the code was the same as hers despite their differences.

Of course, she had to run into someone familiar at the exact moment she was grinning victoriously for opening her locker.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Andy asked, appearing next to her near her own locker and proceeding to do her business.

Gin's smile faltered at hearing the voice, expecting the customary punch to the shoulder that Andy liked to greet her with. When it didn't come, she looked up, only to be met with questioning doe eyes. It threw Gin so hard, she actually choked up, "Uh." She held up Gail's phone before she knew what was happening. "Found it. My phone."

Andy frowned at the uncharacteristic way Gail flustered. "Are you okay?"

"No, actually," Gin admitted, finding her footing again. "I feel like a sack of potatoes, so I'm going home to sleep it off."

Andy's frown turned thoughtful. Gin could see she wanted to ask something, but it was superbly probable that she didn't know the answer so she quickly retreated, throwing a, "Okay, bye," over her shoulder.

"Wait! Gail," Andy called. Gin cursed her luck but turned around anyway, trying not to smile politely. Andy closed in the distance between them. The look of worry she was sending Gin was Oscar-worthy, and Gin found herself staring back incredulously. "I'm not supposed to pry, but I overheard Dov and Chris talking and—and, well, I know that you've been sleeping at a hotel lately. Is everything okay? You're not sick, are you?"

Gin stared some more, trying to find a hint of the biting personality that was McNally. "No," she answered slowly, unsurely. She shook her head, clearing it of weird thoughts. "I mean yes, but not chronically or anything. It's just something I caught."

Andy breathed a sigh of relief, but the worry didn't disappear. "Then why are you staying at a hotel? Is this—is it because of Holly?"

The gears turned in Gin's head, and suddenly, Gail's behavior around everything Holly made sense. They must have been a thing. But she didn't have time to ponder that. She needed to BS her way out of this situation. "No, I just needed some time for myself, y'know?"

Understatement of the century.

Andy nodded her head unsurely, and Gin swore she saw the understanding dawn on her in the way a smile grew on her lips. "Yeah, I guess living with two men can get to you, huh?"

Gin couldn't help but mirror the smile, the reaction being ingrained in her besides the fact that this Andy was genuinely nice. Really nice, actually. "Exactly."

Andy smiled some more, almost proud at finding some common ground with Gail. It made her a little more confident about what she was going to ask. "If you want to, I don't know, talk about it more some time, I'm totally available." She misunderstood Gin's stare as a typical Gail rejection. "I mean, the invitation for girl time is open. Nothing solid." At Gin's continued stare, which was really her trying to figure out if Andy was flirting with her or what, Andy continued, "Anyway, I gotta go. I'll see you around. Get well."

And Gin was left standing there, wondering what the hell just happened.

* * *

Too curious to let it drop, Gin sneaked down to visit a familiar forensic pathologist. She was only marginally surprised to see Holly hard at work that early in the morning. "Hey."

Holly looked up from her computer, and immediately found that there was something off about the way Gail was walking over. She narrowed her eyes. "Gillian?"

Gin smiled wide. "Good eye!"

Holly returned the smile with a polite one, eyes trailing down to her screen. "Not that I'm not glad you're fine and everything, but what are you doing here? Does Gail know you're here?"

"She sent me here," Gin answered, looking around at all the fascinating sciency things.

Holly shot her an incredulous look.

"Not here here," she clarified, gesturing at the environment. "But the station, to get her phone."

Holly nodded slowly. "And you're here here, why?"

"Because McNally just asked me if Gail has been holed up in a hotel room because of you," she explained, cautiously eyeing Holly for any indication that she should drop it. The only thing she could spot was scientific curiosity and understanding, however. "And then she asked me out, I think," she added, frowning.

Holly's eyebrows dipped down as well. "She asked Gail out?"

Gin noted the slight jealousy, so she tried to be as tactful as possible when she added, "She told me I could come to her for 'girl time'?"

By the way Holly laughed at that, Gin figured Andy wasn't trying to woo her. "Don't worry about it. Gail once referred to her as 'nice girl McNally' so I think that's just the way she is."

"It's weird. My McNally is kind of a bitch," Gin said, eyebrows raising because it was all just mindblowing to her. She shook it off. "But besides that." She paused, trying to find the words.

"Yes?"

Gin couldn't find a tactful way of asking, so she just blurted out, "You and Gail used to date?"

Holly nodded, eyes dimming with something like regret before she snapped back to reality. "You should talk to Gail about that."

Gin shot her a sympathetic look, seeing how pained the both of them were by the break up.

Holly laughed humorlessly, averting her gaze. "Don't look at me like that."

She chuckled in response, figuring she should change the subject. "Why does everyone keep saying that?"

"Gail is... Gail," Holly explained vaguely, turning back to her computer. "Maybe you should get back to her if she's so sick she sent you over."

Gin took the hint and started moving towards the door. "Yeah, I should. Thanks for the talk, doc."

"No problem."

* * *

The next day, when Gail was feeling well enough to go to work and was getting ready, Gin carefully approached her. "What?" Gail asked, pulling on a boot.

Gin figured that if Gail was busy with her shoes, she couldn't run after her to kill her. "You know how you sent me to fetch your phone yesterday?"

Gail dropped her now booted foot and pinned Gin with a look. "What happened?"

"Nothing, really," Gin said, shrugging. "I ran into McNally."

Gail narrowed her eyes at Gin, making her vaguely uncomfortable. Gail thought there was something slightly off about the way she said it. Like she was telling the truth, but not the whole truth. For the first time ever, Gail watched Gin fidget, and it hit her like a ton of bricks. "No," she said, pulling on her shoelaces a little too hard. "Not in a million years. Not McNally. Pick someone else."

"What?" Gin asked, genuinely confused.

"You, hanging out with McNally, I forbid it." Gail slipped on her other boot. "She'll want to talk, share _feelings_, and if you're not careful, she'll braid your hair when you're distracted." She shuddered as if it was a bad horror story, but really, it sounded kind of nice to Gin.

"So?"

Gail stood up, settling Gin with a glare (though Gin found that she just looked extra serious). "The only one who braids my hair is me."

Gin tried not to show amusement at that statement. "Okay."

* * *

Really, Gin had listened, but it was just dumb luck that she ran into McNally at the library, of all places. During work hours, of all times. It was a small victory that Gin was wearing Gail's clothes and beanie, but how on earth was she going to explain her outfit while she was supposed to be at work?

"Weren't you just at the station?" Andy asked, confused.

Gin looked up from the selection of books on cats, suddenly confronted with Andy in uniform. She'd seen it a million times, but this caring version of Andy exuding badassery was doing things to Gin. Confusing things. "I... was," Gin offered feebly. "What are you doing here?"

Thankfully, Andy didn't seem to dwell on it. "A fight broke out on the second floor." She nodded over her shoulder where Gin could see Nick leading a man in handcuffs outside. "I'm surprised you haven't heard anything."

"Oh, I guess I got lost in a book," Gin said truthfully, looking down at the one she was holding.

Andy managed to smile at her and narrow her eyes at the same time, conveying her incredulity. "Really?"

Gin quickly remembered Gail's likes. "No, but you should've seen the look on your face," she said, chuckling, but then remembering she shouldn't smile.

Being Gail was confusing.

Andy shot her a weird look, no doubt trying to make sense of Gail being all over the place.

"I'm getting this for Holly," Gin explained.

Andy nodded like that explained everything. "Are you guys finally setting things straight?"

"Well, I wouldn't really call it straight," Gin said, meaning to say that Gail and Holly weren't back together, but unintentionally making a pun.

Andy paused at that, not sure how to take it, but then she chuckled, shaking her head. "I swear, lately, you're a whole other person out of your uniform."

"I guess I am," Gin agreed airily. She spotted Nick over Andy's shoulder and kind of hid behind the bookcase she was standing so she didn't have to deal with him too.

"McNally!" he called.

Andy was eyeing Gin again, having noticed her taking a step back, and gestured at Nick that she'd be right over. He nodded, then looked off to the side when an elderly man approached him to ask something. "So, have you thought about it?"

Gin turned her attention back to her. "About what?"

"Y'know, getting together, catching up?" Andy said, tilting her head this way and that.

Shit.

"That depends," Gin stalled, thinking fast. "On what you're doing tomorrow."

Andy frowned. "Tomorrow is a work day."

"Not for me," Gin said, congratulating herself on a fantastic job of thinking it through. "I guess you can't hang out then..."

"No, no, I can." Andy nodded, mentally rearranging her schedule and counting her vacation days. "I'll make it work."

Gin mentally groaned. Was there no end to how nice and great this Andy was? "Okay then," she mumbled.

Andy smiled wide, glad to make this step towards friendship. To be honest, she'd been wanting to be there for Gail a long time and now was her chance. "Great! I'll send you the details later."

Shit, shit.

"I have a new phone," Gin said quickly.

* * *

"What the fuck!" Gail screeched.

Gin looked up from her book with wide eyes as Gail stormed into the hotel room. She'd been dreading this day ever since she hung out with Andy. Fantastic Andy. Nice Andy. Kind of really attractive Andy. "What?"

"Why does Andy think we're friends?" she demanded, getting up in Gin's personal space.

Gin got up, meeting Gail stride for stride. Though hers were considerably calmer than Gail's. "Because we've been hanging out."

Gail sputtered for a moment. "After I explicitly told you not to!"

"I couldn't help it! She basically badgered me into it."

Gail shot her an incredulous look. "You could have _not_ laughed at her jokes, or _not_ have told her you liked healthy crap, and, oh, I don't know, told her _no_."

"Fine," Gin sighed, looking up at the ceiling in desperation. "I wanted to hang out with her. She's... nice."

"Traci is nice. Andy is—" She stopped as if she really only just heard what Gin said, catching her eyes like she could somehow read her mind like that. Which she probably could. It was creepy how she kept doing that. "No, no, no, no," she said suddenly.

Going by the amount of no's Gail was producing, Gin found she must have somehow realized she was into Andy. She grabbed Gail by the shoulders. "Gail," she said seriously, pulling her attention back to her. "It's very probable I'm going to be stuck here for a very long time, if not forever. You can't keep me hidden away."

Gail stared at her for a moment, then heaved the biggest sigh. It was like she breathed out all the childishness, because the next thing she said was, "It's not that. It's fine if you want to... whatever with whomever. But she doesn't like me like that. I'm pretty sure she's straight."

Gin smiled a small smile, finally allowed to see the real Gail. "Those who don't shoot, always miss."

"Don't even." Gail glared at her, not taking any of that oneliner bullshit. "There's also the tiny detail that she thinks you're me."

"That can be easily fixed."

"Ugh."

* * *

"Gin is banging Andy," Gail said, leaning both her hands on Holly's desk.

Holly looked up from her work, eyes wide. "Excuse me?"

"Not right now, but she's wanting to," Gail explained, grimacing. "Can you imagine—actually, don't imagine that. I'm grossing myself out on so many levels as it is."

"Wait. Stop. Breathe in," Holly urged, and Gail obliged. "Breathe out. Now start from the beginning."

"McNally found out about Gin, and Gin is sporting a huge lady boner for her. Get with the program," she quipped. Then she looked down at her hands, her voice softening. "I need you to tell me I'm doing the right thing by letting her go ahead."

Holly raised her eyebrows, surprised by the maturity that Gail was exhibiting. "Well," she started thoughtfully. "We're getting nowhere on finding out where she came from, right?"

Gail nodded to herself. "No birth certificates, no paper trails, and the address of the crime scene she gave us came up clean."

"Then she's probably stuck here, unless we find her a way back," Holly reasoned, catching Gail's worried eyes. "I think you're doing the right thing."

Gail sighed, lowering her eyes. "Thanks," she muttered tiredly.

Holly watched Gail, considering her situation. "How have you been?"

"Stressed out," Gail laughed. "Between work and making sure people don't think I'm pining after McNally."

"Why don't you get an apartment?" Holly suggested, thinking it may take the edge off things if Gail wasn't sleeping in a hotel all the time. Especially with another her.

Gail shook her head, straightening up. "Maybe, but not now. The stay at the hotel is getting a little pricey as it is."

Holly was quiet as she thought of the next thing to say. "I have a guest room."

Gail eyed her warily, trying not to get her hopes up. "I thought you were seeing someone?"

"What does that have anything to do with renting out a room?" Holly asked, smiling mischievously.

The smile was inviting and infectious, and Gail couldn't help but get her hopes up anyway. "Point taken, doctor Stewart."

* * *

"It totally makes sense," Andy said, pausing in her job to cut up vegetables.

Gin looked up from the recipe, wiping her hands on her jeans. "What does?"

"That you're Gail's twin." She turned to look at Gin, who kept sneaking pieces of cucumber. She shot Gin a dirty look, but Gin popped it into her mouth anyway. "I don't see why Gail wouldn't want anyone to know, but you're way too cool to be Gail."

Gin raised an amused eyebrow. "You think Gail isn't cool?"

"Well, yeah, but in another way? You know what I mean." Andy vaguely waved it off with her kitchen knife before looking around the counter. "Where are the tomatoes?"

Gin looked behind her where she'd last seen them, and held them up. "You mean these?"

Andy was about to grab them, but Gin pulled them away at the last second.

"Too slow!" Gin chuckled.

Andy shot her a dry look. "Wow, really?"

"Yes, really," Gin answered mock-seriously. "What's a cop without good reflexes?"

A bit of a smile tugged at Andy's lips, and suddenly, she was reaching for the vegetables. "I take it back," she huffed even as she reached behind Gin's back to try to get to them. "You're _as cool_ as Gail."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gin breathed out laughingly, juggling the tomatoes until she was holding them up in the air. Crafty Andy just pulled her arms down and took them from her. "Wow, you're tiny," she commented, even though Andy was barely half an inch shorter.

Andy shot her a grin over her shoulder as she turned back to the counter. "Bite me, Peck."

"If you insist," she responded, closing in the distance with a wicked grin.

"_What are you doing?_" Andy's voice went up several octaves due to the laughter—and now dread—that bubbled up when Gin wrapped her arms around her waist from behind and playfully bit into her clothed shoulder.

"I'm just fulfilling your masochistic fantasy," Gin mumbled into her shoulder. She pulled back slightly to remove a hair from her mouth. "Hmn, cotton-flavored."

"I don't have masochistic fantasies, you weirdo. If anything, you're the sadist," she laughed, though she allowed Gin to latch on closer to her neck. She squealed at the not-quite-ticklish sensation, pulling her arms to her chest and raising her shoulders on instinct.

"If that means I get to eat you, sign me up!" Gin quipped, taking another playful bite. The laughter died down a little at that, making room for a more serious interpretation. One where their actions were suddenly flirty instead of friendly. Gin paused in her teasing when Andy remained quiet and she rested her chin on her shoulder. "I just made it weird, didn't I?"

"No." Andy felt her face warm up at the intimate position they were in. She couldn't suppress a small smile. "Okay, yeah, a little."

Gin let go, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry."

"It's fine." Andy turned to her, and waved it off. "I'm very edible like that," she joked, laughing awkwardly.

Gin kind of stared at her, her smile turning a little incredulous as her eyebrows went up. She'd wanted to reply, but she was too busy thinking Andy was supremely cute all flushed and awkward, trying to keep things casual. Sadly (or maybe luckily?), Gin didn't want to keep things casual.

Andy knew something was up, that she didn't hang out with Gin like she hung out with other friends, but she only realized why that was when Gin's facial features slackened as her eyes flickered down to her lips. It was one of those unexpected little things that stole her breath away, that let Gin lean in until there was no more space in between them, that made her close in the remaining distance until she felt warm lips against her own.

Gin was pretty sure her very soul was alight with happiness when she felt Andy return the kiss. Slow and sweet, the kiss made Gin's extremities tingle pleasantly. Oh yeah, things were hella rad right until she lightly grasped at Andy's hips and said woman suddenly shot back as if burned by the action.

Gin blinked in surprise, lips still glistering from the kiss.

"I'm not gay," was the first thing Andy said from a remarkable distance away. She rubbed at her forehead with her the tips of her fingers, distressed.

"What?" Gin blinked once more before she recognized the panic in Andy's doe eyes. "Neither am I," she added, still vaguely confused. She wasn't sure what one's sexual orientation had to do with wanting to kiss each other until she remembered they were both women. Women who kissed. Which was not the norm. Her mouth fell open in understanding.

"It wouldn't be fair to you, right?" Andy continued, pacing back and forth through the kitchen. It was as if she never even heard Gin respond. "I mean, you're basically Gail, and I don't like Gail like that."

Gin's eyebrows raised. "What does Gail have to do with this?"

"I don't want to kiss Gail." Andy grimaced, concluding, "I'm not gay."

Gin sighed, realizing Andy wouldn't hear her even if she had all the answers to her nonsensical ramblings. She stepped in front of Andy, resting her hands on her shoulders to catch her attention. Andy watched her with large, uncomprehending eyes, dropping her hand to her side. "While I know why you're panicking, I don't understand it," Gin said, so at ease with her sexuality, it may have turned her blind to those who weren't. There was only one question she needed the answer to, anyway. "Are you attracted to me?"

Andy looked at Gin but only saw Gail. She shook her head.

She may as well have punched Gin in the gut, because that's what it felt like. She swallowed. "Then... I think—I'll see you around," she said weakly, walking away just like that.

Andy frowned at the empty space in front of her, experiencing the sinking feeling that she made the wrong decision.

* * *

**Raise your hand if you accidentally started shipping Gin/Andy *raises hand* ****I may have gotten a little carried away there, but it's jUST SO INTERESTING?**

**If you want to see something happen in this story or have wicked plot suggestions, feel free to share them!**

**ps. I'M SORRY FOR THE HORRIBLE TITLE.**


	2. Part 2

**Part 2**

Gail didn't even look up when Gin entered the hotel room, too busy sneaking past guards in a video game. "Hey, Wonder Twin," she greeted distractedly. "I've got some news."

She thought it was strange when Gin didn't answer, but she was left pretty much speechless when she saw and felt her slump into her side with a muted sob. She quickly pressed pause before she accidentally shot anyone, and sat there awkwardly. "You, uh, have something to tell me?"

Gin buried her face into Gail's neck, who was starting to eye her double rather comically. "Andy rejected me."

"_What.__"_

* * *

Andy stared at the white board in horror, wishing the names would magically change.

"Oh, will you look at that," Gail quipped, sidling up next to Andy with a pleasant-creepy smile on her face. "You're with me, McNally."

* * *

Andy sat behind the wheel, waiting for Gail to let her have it.

"Y'know, usually for the car to work, you need to turn the key," Gail said airily, enjoying torturing Andy by delaying the Talk. She'd manage to do so all the way until the very end of their shift.

Andy sighed, her eyes on the road. "Just get it over with it."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Gail shrugged, acting way too innocent to actually be innocent. "It's not like you told off the nicest, most understanding woman on earth or anything."

"I'm just not into women like that." The way she said it made it sound like she was convincing herself more than Gail. If Andy actually sounded like she wasn't into women, Gail would have dropped it.

But she didn't.

"You don't need to be into women to like Gin," Gail said, audibly containing her frustration with Andy. "You need to be into Gin to like Gin."

"But she's you!" Andy protested, finally looking at Gail.

Gail just looked right back at her, unimpressed. "You do realize that's the biggest, fattest lie you ever told anyone, right? I'd laugh if it weren't so stupid."

Andy shook her head. "Whatever. You know what I mean. You two are the spitting image of each other. She even dyes her hair like you!"

Gail narrowed her eyes at her like she was talking Japanese. "Have you _looked_ at her?" She didn't pause, letting her frustration fuel her. "No, you know what, have you even _met_ her? No one who knows at least one of us thinks she's me. I'm calling bullshit, McNally."

"What do you want me to do?" she asked desperately. "Date someone who looks exactly like you?"

"Yes!" Gail answered right away. "What's so hard about that?"

"I don't know, okay!" Andy almost yelled, taking Gail aback. She took a deep breath, lowering her voice. "I don't know why I freaked out. She really is the sweetest, most ridiculous person I ever met, and she's totally a fantastic kisser—like, I _would_ turn gay for her fantastic—but I freaked out and I don't know why."

Well, now that all the cards were on the table, Gail wasn't sure what to do next.

"Oh God, I told her I wasn't attracted to her," Andy realized before Gail could find anything to say. She rested her forehead against the steering wheel and groaned before chanting, "Stupid, stupid," as she thumped her head against the rubber.

Gail nodded her agreement, but chose to help Gin instead of rubbing that little fact in. "It's not too late. You can still sweep her off her feet."

Andy turned hopeful eyes to Gail. "You think?"

Gail shot her another dry look. "Have you met her?"

At the repeat of those particular words, Andy cracked a small smile. Gin was the kind of person who probably would give her another chance if she groveled enough.

* * *

Gin had found some great music on Gail's iPod. And when she said great music, she meant fast-paced, angry music. They were a few songs, hidden away amongst a multitude of playlists, but they were there. It was a perfect background for blowing off some steam as she went through her _kata_.

She knew they were meant to be done in an almost quiet contemplation, but she was not feeling very quiet or contemplative today.

Her jabs were unforgiving and her movements stiff. She knew she wouldn't fare well in battle, but her only opponents at the moment were bitter disappointment and, for some reason, jealousy. Someone else was going to make Andy happy some day, and it really didn't sit well with her.

She parried an invisible opponent's attack, throwing them a little harder than was strictly necessary. And that's when she saw Andy standing in the doorway of the hotel room, looking a little stricken by Gin's routines. Andy opened her mouth to ask what she just saw, but couldn't find the right words to do so.

Gin dropped her aggressive stance, pulling the earphones from her ears. "I spent my rebellious years in Japan," she explained half-heartedly, panting. "What are you doing here?" She chanced a glance over Andy's shoulder. "And where's Gail?"

Andy shook herself out of her stupor and closed the door behind herself. If ever there was a time to be sexually attracted to Gin, it certainly wasn't now. "Gail is scarfing down the bag of chips she made me buy her, down in the lobby," Andy said, scrunching up her face at the thought of eating all those treats in one go.

Gin grabbed a towel from the bed and wiped the sweat off her face, waiting for Andy to continue.

Andy watched her face like a hawk. She tried very hard not to notice how lean and fit Gin looked, all glistening with sweat, and it was working pretty well. "And, um, I'm here to talk to you."

Gin perked up at that, wondering if this was going where she thought it was going. "About what?" she asked casually.

Andy momentarily pulled a blank when being asked that question so frankly, so she decided to go with the truth. "About how I kind of want you to kiss me again? Well, maybe we could be a thing, first. I hope." She shook her head at her own weird rant, not quite noticing that Gin was walking over until they were at normal speaking distance. "I mean, do you still want to go out with me now that I've realized I was just scared?"

"Of me?" Gin asked, elated that Andy wanted to give them a chance but at the same time trying to keep her cool. Heck, she even understood the thing where Andy was scared. It made more sense than the nonsensical rambling from a few days before.

"You _are_ related to Gail," Andy tried to lighten the mood. "But no, of—" she made a vague gesture, "—us. Together. Working."

Gin came over to stand too close for mere friends. She looked Andy in the eyes, and noticed that she was actually holding her breath as she waited for an answer. "I don't know. I may need some convincing," she said, finally cracking a smile. "And you'll have to tell me some more about this thing where you're scared."

Andy let out a breath, returning the smile with a dopey one of her own. "Yeah?"

Gin nodded, studying Andy's face carefully as she thought. "And maybe a few kisses."

"I can do that." Her smile turned amused, only vaguely noticing that she was closing the distance between them when Gin's face came closer. Feeling a little giddy, she leaned in, only to bypass her lips and give her a kiss on the cheek.

Gin narrowed her eyes playfully as she looked at Andy, who was only a breath away. "You do understand the concept of a relationship, right?"

Andy grinned, probably enjoying the teasing more than she should. "I don't know, maybe you should tell me," she quipped.

Yeah, definitely too much.

Gin linked her hands behind Andy's neck, gently rubbing her thumb along her hairline. Perhaps too gently for what she was about to say. "That's where we're friends, but when I stick my tongue down your throat, you like it," she said frankly, earning an incredulous laugh from Andy.

"Wow," Andy breathed, but that was all she could say before Gin demonstrated what she meant in the most pleasant of ways. They were both still smiling as they kissed, preventing Gin from actually proving her point, but neither really cared. There would be more time for proper kisses later. As it was, they couldn't stop their giggling as they came together for kiss after kiss.

Some time must have passed, because the next thing they knew, violent knocks to the door interrupted them.

"Hey losers, stop making out and let me in!" Gail yelled.

Andy looked over her shoulder, visibly startled, which just amused Gin all the more.

* * *

Gail had to beat Andy off Gin with a stick after she found out the Peck sort-of-siblings were moving to Holly's spare room. Figuratively, of course. Not only were Andy's intense morals triggered, but also the passion of a thousand lovestruck puppies. It took all of Gail's sarcasm and snark (and at one point even physical pushing) to get Andy to stop wanting to please Gin and move the fuck on.

So they packed their bags and headed for Holly's, Gin's super okay-ness once again getting on Gail's nerves. "Aren't you even slightly annoyed I didn't want Andy to come along?" she asked when she had enough of Gin's calm breathing.

Gin side-eyed her as she followed Gail down the corridor of the apartment complex. "Why would I be? I'll see her soon enough. Besides, she's already texted me."

"Ugh, gross." Gail shuddered, then came to a halt rather suddenly, drawing Gin's full attention. "Okay, here's how it's gonna go down."

"How is what gonna go—"

"First of all, do not bond with Holly over healthy crap. If there's need of democratic representation regarding sustenance, we are the Peck front, and we like junk food," Gail started, completely ignoring Gin's interruption. "Second, do not bond with Holly, period. Third..."

Gin waited as it seemed Gail was going to continue. "Yes?" she prodded.

Gail shot her a look as if offended for even being interrupted, though really, she hadn't gotten further than her second point. "Third of all, I am the dominant Peck and retain the ability to add and/or alter any rules as time progresses."

"Fine," Gin snorted, more amused than anything else. She pondered Gail's rules as Gail headed for a door and knocked. It was starting to become clear that Gail felt threatened by Gin on some weird level. "Though she is pretty hot," she quipped, more to get at Gail than anything else.

Gail's eyebrows furrowed like they'd never furrowed before as she shot Gin the most incredulous of offended looks.

It was like this that Holly caught them when she opened the door. "I thought I heard bickering," she said casually, amused at catching them in the act.

"Hey Holly!" Gin said, quickly ducking inside to avoid Gail's wrath.

* * *

Holly was walking through the hallway, scrolling through emails on her phone. Her thoughts were somewhere else entirely, however, namely with the two Pecks in her guest room. She was considering the immensity of her asking them to basically move in with her, when she heard Gail's alarm go off from behind their slightly opened door. As per usual, it stopped quickly after starting, Gail no doubt turning it to snooze.

She smiled to herself, remembering that Gail would let the alarm go off about five times more before she actually got up. A little too used to waking her up, she was running on auto-pilot as she peeked into their room, only to stop in her tracks and remember they probably wanted privacy. But it was too late. She'd already seen it.

Gail was lying on her side in a fetal position, facing Holly. She looked pretty dead to the world and unable to have turned off the alarm. It had been Gin who turned it off. Holly could see that because Gin still had her arm stretched over Gail in the direction of her phone.

Holly was unable to look away as Gin let her arm drop and wrapped it around Gail's waist, effectively cuddling the other woman to her front. She even went as far as nuzzling the back of her neck. And the most amazing thing of it all was that Gail allowed it. Almost as if they'd spooned before.

Holly was definitely able to stop herself from raising her phone and snapping a picture, but she didn't want to resist that particular urge. Not ten seconds later, once she'd closed the door to its previous barely-open state, she felt vaguely like she now owned porn on her phone; having a picture she didn't want to share with anyone else.

She knocked on the wooden frame like she hadn't just spied them being ridiculously cute. "Gail? I heard your alarm. Are you waking up?"

The response was a tired grumble.

"Gail?"

Holly bit her lip to keep from smiling when she heard a muffled, "Get off," followed by a louder, "Yeah! Yeah, I'm awake. God."

"I'll make coffee," Holly chuckled, wandering off again.

As it turned out, Gin was morning person and a fantastic cook. Holly was surprised-but-not when the double insisted on making them breakfast since they were pretty much imposing. She didn't have any trouble with letting her have a go at feeding them, but Gail was grumbling all the while. At least until Holly offhandedly mentioned that they weren't really imposing that much since she wasn't seeing anyone at the moment. Then, she was suddenly all ears.

"She said I wasn't over my ex," Holly said, shooting Gail a meaningful look.

Gail's eyebrows knitted upwards into her trademark hopeful puppy look, to which Holly responded with a reassuring smile, as if to say, _"__Yes, really.__"_

Gin glanced between the two as she was reduced to a fly on the wall. Taking the hint, she made her way into the next room. But not before giving Gail the thumbs up.

To her credit, Gail ignored her completely. Mostly because she was on a collision course with Holly.

* * *

Gail was looking at Holly drink her coffee, knowing full well she either looked like a lovestruck puppy or a creeper, but not caring. Holly kept sending her looks too, so it was totally great. Fantastic, even.

"Aw, you two are so cute together," Gin said as she entered the kitchen, making her presence known.

Holly looked up, shooting Gin a small smile, while Gail continued staring. "Go burn in a fire," Gail sighed happily.

"I love you, too," Gin quipped airily, leaning on the kitchen island with both her elbows. "As much as I appreciate the death threats this early in the morning—"

"Please, I wasn't wishing you dead," Gail interrupted. She shot Gin a dry look. "Just horribly, disfiguringly mutilated."

"Yes, that's _much_ better," she agreed sarcastically. Holly glanced between the two, unable to hide her amused smile. Watching and hearing the siblings bicker was quickly becoming one of the most entertaining things ever. Better than TV, even. "But I'm interrupting for a reason. In my very short, but very pleasant stay here, I've come to realize that this isn't going to work."

Gail became serious at that. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well, I want to earn my keep, and I'm kind of going to need an identity for that," Gin said, sounding like she knew it was going to be a pain in the ass. "That is, I'm pretty sure I'll never be seeing my reality ever again."

"You're remarkably cool about it," Holly noticed.

Gail slapped a hand on the table, making Holly jump slightly. "Yes! Thank you!"

Both Gin and Holly eyed her strangely, but Gin responded, "Uh, yeah. Anyway." Gail's outburst was quickly forgotten by everyone but Gail. "Apart from my mom, my reality is pretty fucking terrible—excuse my language—so this is a blessing, really."

"Elaine Peck?" Gail asked, looking incredulous all of a sudden. "That mom?"

"Yes." Gin was starting to wonder if everything was okay with Gail, until she remembered that some things were the exact opposite here. Like McNally, for instance. It wasn't a stretch that Elaine Peck was a bitch in this reality, opposed to her saint of a mother. "Oh," she muttered. "Actually, that explains a lot."

Gail was the only other occupant in the room that seemed to get where Gin's thoughts went, because Holly was clueless when Gail responded, "Your face explains a lot."

"We have identical faces," Gin reminded her, keeping her cool, as per usual.

Holly covered up her snicker with a cough, drawing both Pecks' attention. She quickly managed to find a reason for her interruption, not wanting them to know she'd been enjoying their banter. "I actually have an idea how to get you an identity, but we're going to need your mother's help."

Gail groaned, pressing her forehead to the table.

* * *

Gail loved how confronting her mother went.

"_Hey mom."_

"_Hello Elaine."_

_Elaine glanced between the two identical women, looking as composed and intimidating as ever, only to collapse onto the ground as she fainted._

_Gin hurried to her not-really-mother__'__s side to check if she was okay. Gail trusted Gin__'__s judgement, so she remained standing. __"__Is it weird to develop a crush on your twin?__" __Gail asked dryly._

It was pretty fantastic how their combined presence had made Elaine faint. What she hadn't foreseen was how much Elaine would love Gin.

Which was a lot.

"_So you stayed in a Japanese monastery to learn their culture and martial art?__" __Elaine asked once she had accepted the entire story of Gin pretty much appearing out of thin air. It didn__'__t take long before she became familiar enough and went into full interrogation mode._

"_Um." __Gin looked between Elaine and Gail, the latter visibly bored. If she looked closely, she could even see annoyance raging behind Gail__'__s eyes._

"_That__'__s what happens if you support your kid__'__s decisions,__" __Gail muttered under her breath._

_Okay, maybe she didn__'__t need to look __**that**__ closely to spot any annoyance._

It grated on Gail nerves how impressed Elaine was, because in her head, Elaine was a major factor contributing to her fucked-up-ness. Gin was living proof of that.

But then the thing pretty much turned around, because Gin was a saint, apparently.

"_Mom? Uh, mrs. Peck?" __Gin started hesitantly, but didn__'__t wait for an answer. __"__I know you mean well, but you__'__re kind of implying that Gail hasn__'__t achieved anything. Gail and I aren__'__t so different though. I think she may even be stronger than I am.__" _

_She was very cordial in intonation, body language and syntax, but her message was clear: stop riding Gail__'__s ass._

"_Well, she is a Peck, after all,__" __Elaine answered, nodding._

_Gail subtly rolled her eyes at that._

"_So am I,__" __Gin pointed out, leaving Elaine silent for a moment. _

_But the moment of silence meant everything to Gail. For once, Elaine didn__'__t manage to turn a compliment around on her. She shot Gin the tiniest of barely visible smiles before changing the subject to more pressing matters. __"__Whatever. We still need to get Gin an identity.__"_

And then, in Gail's opinion, everything went south again. Despite getting her mother on board, they still had to go through a shitload of paperwork and queues and at the end of the day, when they still hadn't gotten the mess fixed, Gail wanted to _die_.

Well, not really. But she had hit her quota of idiots for the day and wanted to sleep a very, very long time.

"I take it things didn't go smoothly?" Holly asked as she watched Gail drag her feet straight to her bedroom without a word.

Gin sighed, worn out herself, but wearing it better. She said the dreaded words, "We have to come back tomorrow."

"Even with the superintendent's help?" Holly didn't appear too surprised despite her words.

"_Because_ of her help," Gin corrected. "Otherwise we'd be pending for weeks." She let the conversation fall into a lull, noticing how Holly kept shooting the bedroom longing glances. She cracked a smile. "You can go to her, if you want. In fact, you're probably the only one she wants to see right now," she joked.

"She _did_ just go into my bedroom," Holly noticed, returning the smile.

* * *

Holly wasn't very surprised to find Gail lying face-down on the bed. In fact, it was a pretty amazing picture after all that time apart. And now that their relationship status had been reverted to 'tentatively together', she couldn't help but crawl onto the bed and sit next to her on the covers. "Are you okay?" she asked, silently amused.

Gail's response was a muffled groan.

Holly snickered, reaching out to rub comforting circles on her back. "That bad, huh?"

Gail whined. An actual puppy whine. And, really, it was enough information for Holly. "I'll get you something to eat."

Even as Holly made a move to do just so, Gail was spurred into action and rolled over until she was draped comfortably over the other woman's lap. "Make Gin get it," she mumbled into Holly's thigh.

"And how am I supposed to tell her from all the way here?" she chuckled, coming her fingers through Gail's short hair.

Gail was quiet for a moment, possibly enjoying her scalp being massaged, until she started squirming around to produce her phone. Once she had it, she flopped back into Holly's lap, face up.

Holly watched on curiously as Gail continued to message Gin to start on dinner. Putting up with that kind of abuse, she couldn't help but wonder, "I can't imagine what kind of post-apocalyptic world Gillian must come from."

"Shhh," Gail shushed her, gently pushing Holly away by pressing a hand into the middle of her face. "I'm awesome."

Holly just laughed and swatted away her arm.

* * *

**SAM? SAM WHO?**

**A lot of you actually raised your hands, so I would like to say... *high fives all the raised hands* hahahaha.**

**A little look into the brainstorming process: "Gin would be the opposite of Gail; so a buddhist monk, basically, hahaha—shit, I like this idea."**

**Ember;** I never considered Gin to be an OC since she's basically Gail-but-not, but I guess you're right? Ugh, what a mindfuck.


	3. Part 3

**Part 3**

A few days later, Gin was sitting on the couch, looking at her brand new identification documents spelling out _Gillian Peck_. She felt some loss for her original name, but she could console herself with the fact that the letters were in the word. That, and the people around her were hella nice and accepting. The only bad thing about her new identity was that she'd never see her mother again; her kind and loving mother, who sent her out into the world as prepared as an adult could get.

She hoped that Elaine knew she was in a better place.

She heaved a sigh, breathing out the loss and storing the memories away for another, more appropriate moment. She had more pressing matters to be thinking of. Like what her new career would be. She wanted to be a police officer, but she felt that she needed Gail's blessing for that, even if she were to be assigned to a different division.

"What are you thinking about?" Andy asked, setting down two cups of steaming hot tea on the coffee table before sidling up to Gin on the couch.

Gin settled back into the couch, allowing Andy to drape her legs over her lap. "That I want to be a police officer," she answered frankly.

Andy shot Gin an incredulous look. "Really? Why?"

_Because that__'__s what I am, _is what she wanted to say. Though considering the Peck reputation, that would probably come out wrong. "Um," she stalled, looking down at her hands on Andy's knee. "I just love being one, I guess."

"What do you mean?" Andy's look turned confused.

Whoops.

Gin lolled her head back against the couch, and almost got lost in Andy's dark eyes. Was it time to improvise or time to tell the truth?

"I've done a few shifts," Gin said after a moment that felt much longer than it actually was. It was a compromise. She needed Holly and Gail and maybe even Steve to do the whole 'I'm not from around this part of the universe' bit.

Andy's lips twitched up into a smile as she responded, "I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that, because I'm pretty sure that's illegal."

"I don't know, I think I kinda like the idea of you wrestling me into handcuffs." Gin chuckled, squeezing the leg on her lap. "Arrest me, officer. I've broken _the law._"

Andy huffed a doubtful laugh. "Please, you don't have a bad bone in your body."

"Really, that's what you wanna focus on?" Gin's eyebrows shot up, a teasing grin growing on her lips. "Not that I'm basically admitting to being a bottom?"

Andy froze as she realized Gin admitted to just that. The mental images were suddenly a lot clearer than a moment ago, and phew, was it getter warmer in here?

Gin briefly considered reeling in the charm, but Andy's horny look was priceless. Instead of wondering if she'd be scaring her off, she was wondering how far she could push it. "Not to say I'm a one trick pony," she added, voice suddenly sweet as honey. Her hands trailed jean-clad thighs until they reached Andy's waist, where they slipped past and onto the couch. She used the new leverage to push closer, her proximity making Andy back up on the couch until Gin was hovering over her. "I can be very versatile," she purred.

Andy swallowed, looking like she was dying seven different deaths, but feeling very much like she was burning with life on the inside. She would've replied, maybe flirted back, too, but her intelligence had flown off as soon as Gin honed in on her with those smoldering eyes. Though really, it was probably common sense to admire the beauty of Gin's seduction. Of her intense eyes flickering down. Of her inviting lips parting ever so slightly. Of her pale skin flushing a light pink.

Gin watched the emotion flicker behind her eyes, and took pity on Andy's struggle.

But not enough to back away entirely.

She leaned in, stealing a sweet kiss. It was just the thing needed, apparently, because the next thing she knew, Andy had broken through her stupor and was returning it. Her hands came to life, wandering up to touch the sides of her neck, to deepen the kiss. Needless to say, it was at least ten shades of brilliant.

"Whoa, what the hell, Holly?"

Well, that voice was like a cold shower.

Gin broke the kiss to spare a glance over her shoulder, Andy not far behind. Her suspicions were confirmed once she spotted an oblivious Gail being pulled away by Holly. Part of her wanted to scar Gail for intruding on the excellent moment, but her less vengeful side conceded that leaving a little distance between them was probably the right thing to do.

Gin sighed heavily as she tore herself away. "Hey guys, we're in the living room," she called to warn them of their presence. Andy was trying not to look too amused by her intense disappointment, so Gin gave her a shove. "Shut up."

"I wasn't saying anything," Andy defended herself even as she grinned widely. She sat up to grab her tea, her newly adopted innocent facade not fooling Gin in the slightest.

Gail poked her head into the living room. "What are you two doing here?" She eyed them suspiciously. "All chaste and… drinking tea?"

Gin slung an arm over the back of the couch, getting a better look of Gail walking towards them. "We're just warming up before we leave. What are _you_ doing here?"

"On our way to the restaurant, some idiot drove into a puddle right in front of us and Holly took the full—she got wet," Gail caught herself at the last moment. "She's changing into something dry." Then she looked at Gin in that sort of intense way that told the double that she was about to read her mind—

"No," Gin warned, quickly covering her face with her hands and turning around. "Go away, I'm not telling you anything."

Gail blinked, glancing over to Andy, who was just innocently sipping her tea, before she started honest-to-God laughing. "Whatever, twerp," she told Gin, starting to back away towards wherever Holly went. "Have fun," she said cheerily, all the while gesturing towards Andy that she was watching her with menacing, narrowed eyes.

Gin peeked from between her fingers to see that Gail had disappeared.

"That was…" Andy tried to find the words.

Gin dropped her hands with a sigh. "Annoying?"

"Weird," she finished with a smile. "You two are terrifying together. Gail becomes all open and happy. You're suddenly closed off and childish. Definitely weird."

0x0x0

Gin reached over Gail to turn off her alarm clock. She didn't even need to be awake, but here she was, bright and early while Gail groaned as if she were in pain.

Actually, that sounded really convincing.

"Are you okay?" Gin mumbled sleepily, dropping her arm around Gail like she did every morning. She'd learned that annoying Gail was the fastest way to wake her up.

"Did I get with an alien last night?" Gail hissed.

Gin paused in her cuddling. Did she want to cuddle with someone who had 'gotten' with an alien? Probably not. "What?"

Gail curled up into a ball. "It feels like a little monster is clawing its way out of my uterus."

0x0x0

Chris pouted as he sat at the front desk. Gail must hate him. It was the only reason he could think of that would explain her volunteering for something as inane desk duty. The worst thing was that she was enjoying herself. She was even engaging a frantic old lady who claimed that her daughter had gotten missing, and she was calm and polite about it.

"Do you have her number?" he heard Gail ask as she lead the lady to a seat further away from the front desk.

He sighed, tapping his pen against the wood of the desk. She was probably enjoying herself because he was so miserable. But then, what had he done? He couldn't think of anything.

Gail crouched in front of the lady, who was calming down now that someone took her seriously.

He eyed Gail's long hair, wondering if it had something to do with her mood. They were extensions, sure, but perhaps Gail felt better with long hair? That could be a thing, right?

The lady struggled to share her story with Gail. She simply nodded in understanding.

He rolled his eyes. No, that was stupid. Gail had been cold with long hair, before, too. Haircuts were therapeutic, but not _that_ therapeutic.

"What the heck," Andy muttered from behind him.

Chris looked up to see her staring at Gail and the lady. "I know, right?" he said, understanding that seeing Gail being nice like that was a shocker. In fact, maybe he should capture it on video. "She's been like that all morning. She even smiled at me. For no reason. Like she meant it."

"Uh." Andy only now seemed to notice Chris. "Yeah, weird."

"Has she become so angry that it somehow flipped to nice?" he thought out loud. "I don't get it."

"Maybe she's been replaced by aliens," Andy suggested, fidgeting slightly.

"At least that would make sense," he mumbled. He watched Gail get up and head over to them, smiling _again _once she saw Andy standing near him.

"Hey, we were just talking about you," Andy said, and Chris whipped his head towards her so fast, he might have contracted whiplash. His large eyes begged her not to proceed into dangerous territory, least of all if Gail was angry at him.

"Yeah?" Gail asked, glancing between the two like it wasn't a personal offence to be uttering her name without her presence.

"Yeah, about how you're acting so strange that you must have been abducted by aliens," Andy supplied.

Chris watched on slack-jawed as Gail proceeded to laugh. Then she stopped, not in her usual way that suggested she was going to murder you in your sleep, but more as if she just realized something. She glared at them. "Whatever," she scoffed, turning the telephone to her so she could use it.

While Chris was slightly comforted by the familiar reaction, it was still way out there. The timing was all off. And she was still helping a stranger with a menial task. A tap on his shoulder brought him out of his reverie.

"She can handle the front desk on her own. We need you in the back."

Just like that, Chris forgot all about it, because he was too busy sprinting out of his chair.

0x0x0

"Have you seen Gail today?" Chris asked, leaning against the counter in the break room.

"Yeah, her hair looks great," Dov quipped, then paused in his progression to make coffee as he realized what he said. He looked over at Chris nonchalantly. "For extensions, I mean."

Chris shot him a mildly perturbed look, but ignored his comment. "You haven't noticed anything different about her?"

"I don't think so?" he said. "Was I supposed to notice something?"

Chris started wondering if maybe it was all in his head. Or maybe Gail was going to the extreme to get on his nerves, being purposefully nice in his vicinity and normal with everyone else. Yeah, that sounded plausible. "Nah, forget about it." He shrugged, getting an idea as he watched Dov prepare coffee.

0x0x0

Chris couldn't find Gail at the front desk when he returned, but he found her easily enough. She was bothering Andy at her desk, and it didn't seem like either one of them was in a bad mood so that was good.

"How do you keep kids quiet? Duct tape? I don't know," he caught the end of Gail's little tirade, which, while it was in character for Gail to utter such colorful ideas, was a little odd considering her aptitude with children.

"Hey guys," Chris interrupted cheerfully. "I brought coffee and donuts." He held up said treats, hoping not to be too obvious in his attempt to butter up to Gail by allowing Andy in on the action.

Gail briefly glanced at the donuts and store bought coffee, not in the least impressed. "_We_ would love some," Andy said, putting some kind of strange emphasis on the beginning of her sentence.

Chris recognized the brief flash of a pained expression on Gail's face before she, too, took a donut. "Thanks, I guess," she muttered.

Chris quirked a brow.

"What?" Gail huffed, a little offended. "Did you expect me to grovel?"

Chris grinned, appeased by the reaction. "Nope," he answered. Satisfied, he made to move away. "Keep the rest."

If he'd stayed a minute longer, he would've seen Andy stifle a laugh at Gail's pout.

0x0x0

"I don't know whether to throw up or run a marathon," Gin complained, slamming her locker shut. "Where does Gail even put all that caffeine and sugar?"

Andy didn't look up from her phone. "You didn't have to eat _all _the donuts."

"How was I supposed to fake eat donuts?" Gin didn't sound accusing, just tired. She deposited herself on the bench next to the other woman. She was probably sitting a little too close, but no one was around to witness it.

"Fake-trip and real-drop them?" Andy asked, finally looking up.

Gin grimaced as she realized, "Damn, that would've totally worked." Andy's phone vibrated in her hands, drawing both of their attention. "Who keeps messaging you?"

"Chris," she answered. "I think you scared him, because he's insisting I invite you along to the Penny tonight."

"Ugh, Gail loves alcohol," Gin groaned in a very Gail-like fashion, then dropped her forehead to Andy's shoulder in a very Gin-like fashion. "Why is everyone so nice here?" She tensed slightly at the slip, meaning to say that everyone in this version of reality was really nice, but luckily, Andy just laughed it off, taking it as whatever.

"Come on, let's go do something legal," Andy quipped, standing up and pocketing the phone. She ignored Gin's questioning look as she headed for the exit.

"Wait, where are we going?" Gin hurried to follow along. "Andy?"

0x0x0

Gin sat down next to Andy, not thinking twice about it since they entered the Penny together. Also, there was the tiny little fact that Andy wanted them to do something legal together, so here she was. Though she didn't know why they couldn't have gone out for dinner instead.

"Are you and Andy friends now?" Chris asked, unable to help but notice how often he'd seen Andy and Gail together that day.

Gin, having had more practice than she'd liked at being Gail, scoffed. "She wishes."

Andy just shook her head in amusement, dropping out of the conversation as soon as Traci called for her attention, because it was getting kind of creepy how good her girlfriend was getting at emulating Gail.

Chris was still smiling at Gin, which surprised her. Not because her version of Chris was a total macho misogynist, but because she'd been nothing but nasty to him all day and yet he stayed nice and kept buying her things Gail liked. "Tequila?" he asked, getting up. "It's on me tonight."

Wow, okay, yeah, he was still buying her things. Would Gail take him up on free booze?

Actually, that wasn't a very hard question.

"Fuck yeah," Gin said, leaning forwards on the table. "Bring it, Diaz."

0x0x0

Two shots into the evening and Gin already felt like she'd been punched in the maw. She was buzzing with adrenaline from the caffeine and sugar, and now she was mellowing out on the alcohol. She had a feeling she'd be witnessing a party later tonight; a party hosted by the toilet, with her stomach contents as its guests of honor.

Ugh, that was a gross mental image.

She glanced up at a jovial Chris, who was talking to Dov and Chloe about immigrants. More specifically, how pretty much everyone was an immigrant, _technically_. Bored already due to her stimulants shortened attention span, she stared at his features. He was a really pretty man. With sweet eyes, broad shoulders, and nice hair. He'd make pretty babies for sure.

Feeling the stare (she was guileless by now), Chris turned his pretty brown eyes to her. "What?"

Gin leaned in slightly, balancing herself with a hand on her knee. Andy jumped slightly, and Gin realized that she hadn't found her own knee, but that of the woman next to her. Andy was doing a remarkable job of pokerfacing her way through the situation, so she went with it as to not raise any suspicions. She pinned Chris with a serious look, gesturing at his head with a vague wave of the hand. "What's up with your face?"

Chris shot her a questioning look, not sure how to take the comment. "What?" he repeated.

"It's prettier than it was two drinks ago," Gin explained gravely, still staring.

Chris dropped his head, not having seen that coming in a moment of distraction. Unbeknownst to Gin, that was such a Gail thing to say, that Christ ignored it and continued on with the conversation.

Gin frowned, disliking being ignored, and turned to Andy, who was not necessarily ignoring her, but not paying much attention to her either. She inched closer and rested her chin on Andy's shoulder, interrupting Traci in the middle of her sentence. "Hi," Gin said, smiling.

An amused smile slowly crept onto Traci's lips as she watched who she thought was Gail. "How much did you have to drink?"

Gin glanced back at the table littered with glasses, not all of them hers. "Uh," she muttered, counting the glasses.

"Too much," Andy answered for her, shifting awkwardly in Gin's close presence.

"Apparently," Traci chuckled, then addressed Gail, "Do you need a ride home?"

Gin was about to say yes, but Andy beat her to it. Which was probably for the best since home was where actual Gail was. "You know what? I think I'm gonna head out now." She slipped from Gin's grasp, making to stand up. "If you want to come, that's fine," she told Gin.

Gin pretended to think it over. "To the good girl mobile!" she quipped, earning her a rather comical glare from Andy and another semi-incredulous laugh from Traci. "What?"

Andy shook her head, unable to not be amused at the innocent face Gin was pulling.

0x0x0

Gin leaned into Andy's side as she was guided over to the car. It's not that she needed the support of an arm around her waist, but she liked the proximity of another warm body. She wasn't nearly drunk enough to stumble along, which Andy didn't need to know.

"What are you doing?" Andy giggled once they arrived at the car. Gin had started slithering into Andy's arms until she was cuddled up to her front, and buried her face into the side of her neck. She may have exaggerated her drunken state so that she could push her up against the car, but she was feeling rather guilt free once Andy sighed happily and wrapped her up in an embrace.

"You ask that every time I try to butter you up," Gin mumbled into her neck, snorting.

Andy huffed, even though she was smiling. "Yeah, well, I can't help that your game is creepy."

Gin lifted her head to look at Andy, and Andy wondered if she'd offended her. "You think I have game," she said, breaking into a smile.

"I'm here, aren't I?" Andy quirked a brow.

Gin nodded, beaming at her because heck yeah, she was there. She kind of wanted her to be there, closer to her lips, but they were out in the street. People roamed the street. People with eyes. "We… should probably go."

Andy was about to agree, but then she remembered Gail. Gail, who had developed a somewhat protective streak for Gin and would probably kick her ass for bringing her home drunk. "Damn," she breathed.

* * *

**Hehehehe.**

**So I'm planning for this to be four chapters long, ending with Gin going back to her universe, Holly going to San Francisco and, in a moment of desperation, Gail and Andy drunkenly hooking up, pretending to be with the one they're really interested in—no, jUST KIDDING. Phew, now that that's out of the way, I don't feel tempted to write that horrifyingly angsty plotline anymore. But it will be four chapters long.**

**It might seem like a silly request, but I'm curious to know what you thought was funny. That's really the greatest thing you could put in a review (imo, anyway). Care to share? Y/Y?**

**Peace out,  
Plushy**

**LuceLuxe; **Holy heck, the Bizarro thing was a total coincidence. I was using it as a adjective, like weirdo. That's pretty fantastic. The 'plot' of this story is basically getting Gin set up (or sent back), which... I probably should've put in the summary. EH, I just like writing weird things and you seem to like it so whoop!  
**notmychair; **You sound surprised, hahaha.


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